Former FIFA vice president Jeffrey Webb, extradited to the United States as part of a massive soccer corruption scandal, is to appear in court later Saturday, federal prosecutors in New York said.
Webb, 50, from the Cayman Islands, is to be arraigned at 2:00 p.m. (1800 GMT) before Judge Vera Scanlon at the United States Courthouse in Brooklyn.
It will be his first US court appearance since his arrest in Switzerland in May as part of a sweeping US investigation into corruption in international football.
He reportedly had been flown from Switzerland to New York earlier in the week, and lawyers expected litigation to drag on for months.
Six other former FIFA officials remain in custody in Switzerland, fighting against extradition to the United States.
In all, 14 defendants stand accused of soliciting and receiving more than $150 million in bribes and kickbacks across 24 years.
US Attorney General Loretta Lynch unveiled the 47-count indictment in May, charging soccer officials and marketing executives with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies.
Besides serving as FIFA vice president, Webb was president of the Cayman Islands football association as well as CONCACAF, which oversees the sport in North and Central America and the Caribbean.
- Bribery alleged -
Prosecutors allege that Webb was bribed more than $7 million by sports marketing outfit Traffic Sports USA and its then-president Aaron Davidson in exchange for contracts granting exclusive rights to soccer tournaments.
Traffic Sports USA is a subsidiary of the Brazil-based Traffic Group, which was involved in buying and selling media and marketing rights for football games.
Davidson appeared Friday in a New York court for a pre-trial hearing. He now is out on bail, and court papers indicate he has been discussing a plea deal with prosecutors.
Six other FIFA officials wanted by the United States -- all from South America or the CONCACAF region -- have not yet agreed to be extradited.
They include Eugenio Figueredo from Uruguay, who is also an ex-FIFA vice president, as well as Costa Rican Eduardo Li, who was supposed to join the FIFA Executive Committee in May.
The arrests in Switzerland ignited an unprecedented crisis at FIFA, with the body's president Sepp Blatter ultimately agreeing to stand down.
Blatter, 79, has denied any wrongdoing, saying he bears no responsibility for any misdeeds committed by his deputies.
Webb's court appearance comes ahead of a meeting in Zurich on Monday where the body's executive committee is expected to set out the timetable to determine the election for Blatter's replacement.
Commentators, and even sources close to Blatter, have not ruled out the prospect of the embattled FIFA president reversing his decision to resign and standing for reelection.
Former FIFA vice president Jeffrey Webb, extradited to the United States as part of a massive soccer corruption scandal, is to appear in court later Saturday, federal prosecutors in New York said.
Webb, 50, from the Cayman Islands, is to be arraigned at 2:00 p.m. (1800 GMT) before Judge Vera Scanlon at the United States Courthouse in Brooklyn.
It will be his first US court appearance since his arrest in Switzerland in May as part of a sweeping US investigation into corruption in international football.
He reportedly had been flown from Switzerland to New York earlier in the week, and lawyers expected litigation to drag on for months.
Six other former FIFA officials remain in custody in Switzerland, fighting against extradition to the United States.
In all, 14 defendants stand accused of soliciting and receiving more than $150 million in bribes and kickbacks across 24 years.
US Attorney General Loretta Lynch unveiled the 47-count indictment in May, charging soccer officials and marketing executives with racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies.
Besides serving as FIFA vice president, Webb was president of the Cayman Islands football association as well as CONCACAF, which oversees the sport in North and Central America and the Caribbean.
– Bribery alleged –
Prosecutors allege that Webb was bribed more than $7 million by sports marketing outfit Traffic Sports USA and its then-president Aaron Davidson in exchange for contracts granting exclusive rights to soccer tournaments.
Traffic Sports USA is a subsidiary of the Brazil-based Traffic Group, which was involved in buying and selling media and marketing rights for football games.
Davidson appeared Friday in a New York court for a pre-trial hearing. He now is out on bail, and court papers indicate he has been discussing a plea deal with prosecutors.
Six other FIFA officials wanted by the United States — all from South America or the CONCACAF region — have not yet agreed to be extradited.
They include Eugenio Figueredo from Uruguay, who is also an ex-FIFA vice president, as well as Costa Rican Eduardo Li, who was supposed to join the FIFA Executive Committee in May.
The arrests in Switzerland ignited an unprecedented crisis at FIFA, with the body’s president Sepp Blatter ultimately agreeing to stand down.
Blatter, 79, has denied any wrongdoing, saying he bears no responsibility for any misdeeds committed by his deputies.
Webb’s court appearance comes ahead of a meeting in Zurich on Monday where the body’s executive committee is expected to set out the timetable to determine the election for Blatter’s replacement.
Commentators, and even sources close to Blatter, have not ruled out the prospect of the embattled FIFA president reversing his decision to resign and standing for reelection.
